This invention relates to a recording head position adjusting mechanism in an ink jet recording apparatus.
If a black recording head and a color recording head are mounted on a single carriage in order to compose a color printer using a serial type on-demand ink jet recording apparatus, the mechanical tolerances and mounting tolerances inherent in the respective recording heads cause relative positioning errors, and these errors cannot form satisfactory color images.
To overcome this problem, a mechanism disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei. 7-314851 was considered. This mechanism not only corrects an inclination of each recording head independently by interposing a rotary correcting plate in either one of scanning directions on a contact surface extending in parallel to the scanning directions, but also adjusts a sheet feed direction in one of the recording head based upon the other recording head by interposing an adjusting plate on either one of positioning surfaces extending in parallel to the scanning directions. This mechanism provides the advantage that the inclination adjustment as well as the position adjustment in the sheet feed direction of the recording heads can be made simultaneously. However, these adjustments require that a plurality of rotary correcting plates and adjusting plates whose thicknesses are different according to amount of correction required. Also, such adjustments are likely to cause slight recording head positioning errors during the process of inserting correcting plates and adjusting plates. Accordingly, it is desired to provide a recording head positioning mechanism which overcomes the shortcomings of the prior art.
This invention has been made in view of such problems. An object of the invention is, therefore, to provide a novel recording head position adjusting mechanism capable of correctly adjusting the inclination of a recording head by simply turning a lever disposed on a carriage.
Further, another object of the invention is to provide a novel recording head position adjusting mechanism capable of adjusting the position of one of the recording heads in a sheet feed direction relative to the other recording head by simply turning a lever disposed on the carriage.
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a recording head position adjusting mechanism in an ink jet recording apparatus, wherein a carrying body, formed as a board, carrying a recording head is constructed and arranged so as to be pivotable about a reference pin as a fulcrum on the carriage in a scanning direction. The carrying body also includes an angle adjusting member arranged on the carriage at a distant position from the pin that includes a cam surface which displaces the carrying body in the scanning direction by contacting the carrying body.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a recording head position adjusting mechanism in an ink jet recording apparatus, wherein two carrying bodies each carrying a recording head are arranged on a carriage, and one carrying body is displaced in a sheet feed direction with respect to the other carrying body, comprising: a nozzle position adjusting member arranged on the carriage, which displaces one of the two carrying bodies in a sheet feed direction by contacting one of the two carrying bodies.
According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a recording head position adjusting mechanism in an ink jet recording apparatus, wherein two carrying bodies each carrying a recording head are arranged on a carriage, comprising: two pins arranged on the carriage, the carrying bodies being pivotable and slidable on the pins; two angle adjusting members arranged on the carriage, each having a cam surface for displacing a respective carrying body in a scanning direction by contacting the carrying body; and a nozzle position adjusting member arranged on the carriage, the nozzle position adjusting member displacing one of the two carrying bodies in a sheet feed direction by contacting the carrying body.
Still other objects and advantages of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part be apparent from the specification.
The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combination of elements, and arrangement of parts exemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth. The scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.